President Bush on Thursday said the ruling was “out of step with the traditions and history of America” and promised to appoint judges who affirm God’s role in the public square.
       “America is a nation ... that values our relationship with an Almighty,” Bush told reporters as he began a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin at a summit of world industrial powers.
       “The declaration of God in the Pledge of Allegiance doesn’t violate rights. As a matter of fact, it’s a confirmation of the fact that we received our rights from God, as proclaimed in our Declaration of Independence.”
       
SENATORS PRAY EN MASSE
       In an extraordinary show of solidarity, virtually the entire Senate showed up for a morning prayer Thursday, heads bowed behind their desks, to affirm that the United States is “one nation under God,” after the court declared the pledge unconstitutional.
       Moments later, a nearly full House gathered to recite the pledge, with some shouting “under God.”

They followed with a sustained standing ovation, and a few House members joined hands to sing the first line of “God Bless America.”
       Both houses of Congress start each working day with the pledge, but typically only a few lawmakers are in the chambers to recite it.
       
DASCHLE CALLS RULING ‘JUST NUTS’
       Some lawmakers moved quickly to try to overturn a decision Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D., called “just nuts.”
       “What’s next?” asked Rep. Roy Blunt, R-Mo. “Will our courts, in their zeal to abolish all religious faith from public arenas, outlaw ‘God Bless America,’ too?”

“We believe the court’s finding was correct and is consistent with recent Supreme Court rulings invalidating prayer at school events,” the American Civil Liberties Union said in a statement. “... Schools can and should teach tolerance and good citizenship but must not favor one religion over another or belief over non-belief.”